When it comes to promoting good mental health children and adolescents need guidance, instruction and positive role models. When parents interact in a loving and accepting way toward their children, set and enforce appropriate boundaries, communicate regularly, take interest in their child's activities, and promote healthy habits they can be assured that they are giving their children important advantages that will go far toward facilitating good mental health.

Our September Snapshot is a recap of our most relevant Snapshots over the past two years under the categories of mental health, relationships, connection and technology.

Good mental health is more than not having a mental illness like anxiety or depression. It’s a state of emotional and behavioral well-being that allows teens to thrive. There isn’t a single cause that clearly explains changes in mental health. Rather, many different factors can influence mental health.

Although all teenagers are different, the life challenges and experiences that teenagers go through are often similar. Adolescence is the time when teens start to consolidate all of the different parts of their identity and experiment with independence; two things that have the potential to cause conflict within their families and relationships.

In adolescence parents and children often begin to spend more time apart. It’s natural for teenagers to want to spend time by themselves, as well as time with friends and other people outside their families. But teenagers still need strong relationships with parents to feel safe and secure as they meet the challenges of adolescence. Knowing that you’re there to love and support them gives your child confidence to try new things, explore new ideas, interests and relationships.

In today’s digitally connected world, parents have to manage their own relationship with the internet and mobile devices, along with managing their children’s use of and exposure to the same technology. This brings with it a host of both benefits and challenges.